BC Injury Law and ICBC Claims Blog

This Blog is authored by British Columbia ICBC injury claims lawyer Erik Magraken. Erik is a partner with the British Columbia personal injury law-firm MacIsaac & Company. He restricts his practice exclusively to plaintiff-only personal injury claims with a particular emphasis on ICBC injury claims involving orthopaedic injuries and complex soft tissue injuries. Please visit often for the latest developments in matters concerning BC personal injury claims and ICBC claims

Erik Magraken does not work for and is not affiliated in any way with the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (ICBC). Please note that this blog is for information only and is not claim-specific legal advice. Erik can only provide legal advice to clients. Please click here to arrange a free consultation.

Posts Tagged ‘Azak v. Chisholm’

Reasons for judgement were published this week by the BC Supreme Court, Smithers Registry, demonstrating that punching someone in the face is rarely the legally acceptable solution to a problem.

In the recent case (Azak v. Chisholm) the Defendant was a contractor building a retaining wall on property neighbouring the Plaintiff’s. A verbal confrontation between the Plaintiff and Defendant occurred with the court finding “the plaintiff confronted Chisholm about the Project in a belligerent manner that Chisholm did not like” and specifically with the Plaintiff calling the Defendant “a ‘f-ing asshole” and a “white piece of shit”.

The Defendant gave evidence as follows surrounding the altercation:

Chisholm told the plaintiff that “we are going to go to work and what are you going to do about it?” The plaintiff responded by saying: “you’re going to find out right now” and that Chisholm was a “white piece of shit”. Chisholm testified that he perceived this as a threat and he did not want to find out what the plaintiff had in mind. Chisholm said “I’ve had enough”, jumped down from the retaining wall and hit the plaintiff in the face.

The punch resulted in a fractured cheek and nose that requires surgical correction.

The Plaintiff successfully sued for damages. In rejecting the Defendant’s claim of self defense and noting the burden on a defendant to successfully raise the defense Mr. Justice Weatherill provided the following reasons:

[70] I find that, regardless of the harassment and insults the plaintiff had levied at Chisholm and regardless of how long the plaintiff’s difficult behaviour had been ongoing, Chisholm had no right or justification to do what he did. I find that, whatever threat Chisholm perceived when he was first confronted by the plaintiff on the morning of July 2, 2013 had eased well before the Assault took place. I do not accept that Chisholm was either afraid for his own safety or that of his co-workers. Chisholm could easily have either removed himself from the property or had Nyce mediate the situation, as he had done many times previously. Instead, I find that Chisholm simply and regrettably let his anger and frustration get the better of him.

[71] I find that Chisholm’s reaction was unreasonable and totally disproportionate to the circumstance he was in and I reject his claim that he acted in self-defence. No reasonable person in Chisholm’s shoes would have felt physically threatened by what the plaintiff had said.

[72] I find that the plaintiff has demonstrated, on the balance of probabilities, that Chisholm committed the tort of battery upon him, that Chisholm failed to demonstrate he was acting in self-defence and, therefore, Chisholm is liable to the plaintiff in damages.

This blog is authored by personal injury and ICBC Claims lawyer Erik
Magraken. Use of the site and sending or receiving information through it
does not establish a solicitor / client relationship. The views expressed and the content provided on this blog is for nonprofit educational purposes.
It is not, and is not intended to be, legal advice on any specific set of facts. The use of this website does not create a solicitor-client
(attorney-client) relationship. If you require legal advice, you should contact a lawyer directly.